Trump's Spy Chief Shutters Revenge Task Force Amid Backlash

Tulsi Gabbard has scrapped a task force critics accused of serving as a vehicle for Trump's retribution campaign.

Published on Feb. 10, 2026

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Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence, has shut down the Director's Initiatives Group, a task force she created to pursue Donald Trump's political vendettas. The group had been accused of serving as a vehicle for Trump's political retribution campaign and faced intense scrutiny over its handling of a whistleblower complaint and its seizure of voting machine data in pursuit of Trump's 2020 election conspiracy theories.

Why it matters

The shuttering of the Director's Initiatives Group comes amid growing concerns over the politicization of intelligence agencies and the use of government resources to target political opponents. This move is seen as an attempt by Gabbard to restore transparency and credibility to the intelligence community.

The details

The Director's Initiatives Group was accused of falsely linking a federal security worker to the planting of pipe bombs outside DNC and RNC headquarters in D.C. before the Jan. 6 Capitol attack. The group was also criticized for its investigation into Trump's debunked claims that the 2020 election was stolen, focusing on vulnerabilities with voting machines. Gabbard has denied any missteps, stating that the group was always intended to be temporary and that its staff had been reassigned elsewhere within the ODNI.

  • The Director's Initiatives Group was shut down late last year.
  • Gabbard missed a deadline in December to submit a classified report with details about the task force's leadership, staffing, and hiring practices.

The players

Tulsi Gabbard

The 44-year-old director of national intelligence who created the Director's Initiatives Group.

Donald Trump

The former president whose political vendettas were allegedly pursued by the Director's Initiatives Group.

Mark Warner

A Democratic senator from Virginia who previously told Reuters that the Director's Initiatives Group 'seems to be just a pass for a witch hunt.'

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What they’re saying

“The Director's Initiatives Group was created as a temporary effort to surge resources to deliver on high priority projects with near term deadlines, including Presidential Executive Orders.”

— Tulsi Gabbard, Director of National Intelligence (The Daily Beast)

“The group 'seems to be just a pass for a witch hunt.'”

— Mark Warner, Democratic Senator from Virginia (Reuters)

What’s next

Gabbard faces ongoing scrutiny over her handling of the Director's Initiatives Group and her continued pursuit of Trump's 2020 election conspiracy theories. The shuttering of the task force is seen as a step towards restoring transparency and credibility to the intelligence community, but the long-term impact remains to be seen.

The takeaway

The closure of the Director's Initiatives Group highlights the growing concerns over the politicization of intelligence agencies and the use of government resources to target political opponents. This move by Gabbard is an attempt to address these issues, but it remains to be seen whether it will be effective in restoring trust in the intelligence community.